March/April Thread #3

[Little Bear's Mum]

Congrats to Traci's DH. Isn't it funny how they stress about exams and always come out fine. Well done.

Food - Daniel's been enjoying some more chunkier food too. The flavours are more interesting too which I think helps. He's been a different eater since I bought his meal times forward by about an hour. I even got adventurous yesterday and made him macaroni cheese. I had no idea if he'd like it, but he did. I used formula, cheese and flour for the cheese sauce, macaroni mashed with a fork once cooked and had some zucchini on the side for his vege. He seemed to like it, and as there's left overs for tonight I guess I'll find out if he eats it again. I read somewhere that it's really important to have them eating more chunkier meals as they get closer to 1 year because if they don't develop their chewing jaw motion they are slower to develop speech. All to do with their mouth forming different shapes I guess.

We're not going to Auckland now, so Karen we won't be able to catch up. The plane has broken down and so no flight.  :cry: Oh well, nothing I can do, it was free so can't complain.

Naomi - best wishes for your new job. Think how much the kids are going to loooove seeing you when you come home each day. Just like they get excited when their dad comes home.

Traci - Daniel's bedtime remains the same at the end of the day 6.30pm, unless he's extremely cranky and tired. He's usually awake from his afternoon nap by 2.30pm and stays awake until bed. You might find Cole is actually fine if you keep him up. Infact come to think of it, we haven't done the catnap in ages, and when we did stop it helped improve his night sleep. Do you do bathtime at night? We find that definitely helps when he does get cranky. We try to hold him out until 5.45pm for that though. I have also found bringing his dinner time earlier to 4.30pm has also solve some of the grizzling crankiness. I think what was happening when I thought he was bored and tired he was actually hungry!

Ok, time for a 5 min nap for me before Daniel wakes... or can I hear him now. Don't think I'll be able to make the chat today, with Daniel still being sick with a cold he's a lot more clingy.

[Erin M]

Hi all--
I've been catching up since my last post many, many pages ago.  I think you're chatting right now, but I don't think I'll have the chance to stop in.  Sooooooooo tired - but had to let you ladies in on my Thanksgiving - Katie has had a cold for the past week or so, nothing too serious, just a cold from all indications.  Anyway, we get to the ILs Wednesday night, put her to bed, all is fine....she had a MISERABLE night Wednesday, up every hour at least - I'm thinking it's all due to the cold and the unfamiliar place.  We get up Thursday and Katie is super sluggish and very unhappy.  Keeps falling asleep on anyone who was holding her (SO not like her - we take her temp and it's almost 104! -- for you metric folks, normal is 98.6).  So, I call our pediatrician (can I tell you HOW much I LOVE the man who took time out of his Thanksgiving to talk to me for 20 minutes) - and he's not happy - her fever is too high, she's breathing WAY too fast (66-72 breaths a minute - apparently something closer to 40 is normal) so he tells us to take her to the hospital.  They ran a bunch of tests, turns out it's all viral, but they gave her a breathing treatment (like what they give asthmatics) and a ton of Advil and Tylenol to kick the fever and make it easier for her to breathe.   They sent us home - Thursday night was rough - she ended up sleeping with me (guess who is sick now?!), last night was better, and today all she wanted to do was sleep. Temp is close to normal, though her lungs are still super congested.  What an awful, awful day.  I'm so glad everything seems to be ok. 

Anyway, sorry to all the other moms with sick LOs.  Hope everyone in the US enjoyed their holiday. 
Best of luck with the new job Naomi on Monday. 

Thanks for reading about my trauma. 
Talk to everyone soon.

[Carter'sMama]

Hello everyone!  I keep thinking it is Sun night because DH has been home since wed afternoon due to U.S Thanksgiving!!  We had a safe drive home from Toronto area today which I was very happy about.  Windsor doesn't have anywhere near as much snow as my parents place did!  We tried to leave at Carter's nap time so he would sleep for some of the 4 hr drive home.  He ended up sleeping 2 hours and then fussing the rest of the way  :evil:   It's hard driving that long with a fussing baby.  He kept throwing his toys all over the car and then crying because he wanted them back.  Eventually we turned on Sheryl Crow for him and it was instant quiet ... that is until his favorite song was over!!!

The weekedn went pretty well!  I actually got him to bed in my parents condo with a whole bunch of people having dinner only steps away from his bedroom!!!  He didn't even have any nightwakings and slept until his normal wake-up time.  He had two naps in his playpen as well.  On Fri we went to DH uncle's who has this amazing house in the country (think indoor pool, babbling brook outside back door, huge stone fireplace) and I actually got CArter to fall asleep on teh couch in front of the fire  :shock:     I have NEVER been able to get to sleep anywhere other than crib or carseat/stroller.  DH always whines that he wants him to sleep on him but he won't.  I knew Carter was tired and I had nowhere to put him down for a nap (the men were off doing business) so I ran through our usual winddown and then sat on this huge sectional sofa and put Carter in front of me.  I rubbed his back and sang a little bit and he was out like a light ... THAT is until DH cames in the front door yelling "Honey, where are you??"  Oh well I was so happy that I actually suceeded that I just let him finish his nap on the way back to town!  Well that's it for my weekend!

Hayley:  When I was renting and I had my big hound/rotti dog, my landlord made me sign an agreement to fix any damage and to have the place professionally sprayed for fleas etc and the carpets cleaned when my lease was up.  My dog never had fleas or did any damage thank goodness but atleast I knew what I was getting into.

Naomi & Hannah:  Good luck to both of you going back to work.  I am definitely not looking forward to it myself.  I have unitl Feb so let me know how it goes.  I am having a hard time finding day care around here too 

Traci:  Weimaraners are great dogs!  When they are puppies their fur feels like velvet.  I would definitely recommend getting a dog from a pound or if you know what breed you want look for a rescue club for that breed.  They usually have all ages and then you know that you are helping out!!  I can help you with contacts if you need any or the Dogs in Canada magazine is fantastic.

BTW, I'm Cathy ... just turned 26, married to DH for 2.5 years, have one dog (Boss) and one fancy pants cat (Ollie Furr)!!!  I am a veterinary technician with a psychology degree (my husband reminds me daily about what a waste that degree was because I ended up going to vet tech school after anyway).  We have one darling baby boy, Carter (aka Carcheezy) and can't wait to have more!!!

[Little Bear's Mum]

Hi again. Great news for us, we've got a tenant. It's the lady with the dogs and 3 teenagers. We've got a bond to cover any damages, and she'll have to clean the carpets when she moves out. We're only down 1 week in rent so that's even better.

Daniel's still Mr Grizzly bum - I think on top of his cold he's got all the t##thing symptoms too. Rash down-under, red cheeks, very clingy, and the cold to top it all off. I thought the cold was getting better but today he's definitely worse again. Probably a good thing we haven't ended up in Auckland after all. I've just put him down for an afternoon catnap, having just said in my last post he doesn't have them now, today he soooo desperately needs it. I guess he's like us, and when sick needs more sleep.

As I didn't get my snooze before, I'm going to get it now.

Oh, btw I'm 34yrs old, married to DH for 1.5 years, together for total of 6.5yrs. Live on an airforce base in the lower North Island. 2 cats, Marty and Macy. I used to be an executive assistant for the director of an investment company, (very stressful at times) now full time mum. I'll go back part time when Daniel's 1 yr old just to keep my hand in it and for some extra $$$$. I do miss it a weeny bit too.

[Carter'sMama]

Ok, here's the pics ... finally!

1st one is me pre-Carter, 2nd is our Wedding day and 3rd is Carter at our Thanksgiving!!!

[Carter'sMama]

Sorry about the chat ladies     I dragged DH away from CSI to help me scan/post pics for you and the scanner messed up and anyway when I got back to the chat everyone was gone ...  Better luck next time for me I guess!
On the plus side, I finally got some pics posted!!!

[kate585]

LONG POST ALERT!!!

Erin, you poor girl!  Or, I guess Katie is the poor girl, but we're here to support the moms...everyone else will be fawning over Katie, right?   :wink:   Glad she seems to be on the mend.

Hayley, congrats on the tenant, but sorry about the trip to see your folks.  I'm sure they're bummed, too. 

Cathy, hooray for you!!!  Carter looks so much like dh...they're both facing the same way and look a lot alike.  You are a cutie, too...what is it with this thread?   

Traci, CONGRATULATIONS to dh!!!  And, to you!!  You were such a huge suppor to him through all of this you get a lot of the credit in my book!   :wink:

We are home from our trip with minimal scars.  Ryan was GREAT at Thanksgiving...just didn't want to miss anything so no nap when he really needed one.  Everyone thought dh and I were crazy b/c we kept being like, "He's so tired.  He's about to get cranky." and he's just smiling and laughing and entertaining everyone.  He did well the rest of the weekend and even took a nap at my best friend's house and slept long enough for dh and I to see the new Harry Potter (great, btw).

When I was at my friend's house she was talking about her friend's son who is allergic to wheat, eggs, nuts, and milk.   :shock:   So, I start talking about my friend whose son is allergic to wheat and how there are a lot of gluten free products out there.  Now, my two best friends know all my friends and who has kids, etc.  So they were like, "Whose kid is allergic to wheat?"  Dh looks at me like, "You're busted!"  So, I had to spend the next 20 minutes explaining the BW philosophy and how I chat online and post and all this.  It is so weird to explain, isn't it?  I really fell like you all are my friends, but it is so funny to explain to other people, especially when I was so not an online kind of girl pre-baby. 

Okay, that was long...can you tell dh is at a hockey game and I'm flying solo on a Saturday night?   :lol:

[B&BMommy]

Hi Girls

Quick update, then back to get caught up. Although I'm crazy should be in bed right now.  We've had a rough few nights. Up either every hour or every two hours as least. Its been hard.
I've also been with my sister too, so no sleep and lots of running around,  :shock:  she's on new meds now, so we're hoping they will work for her, but they are making her quite sick too.

Well, as I said just a quick post from me tonight. Going to get caught up, and then hopefully to bed for a few hours....fingers crossed.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Holly - Mom of Brady - Our Touchy/Spirited/Textbook Little Boy - Born March 20 2005

[Judy]

Heya gals!!    Wow 3 pages already!!!  We need an emoticon with hair blown back from speed!!

Erin soooo sorry to hear Katie is sick and had to go to emerg.  That's awful.  Glad she's going to be ok!  Your pediatrician sounds awesome!!  Hope you are feeling better soon too!

Traci I put the girls down at the same time every night regardless of morning wake time and/or nap schedule.  If we hit a rough patch around 4.30-5pm and they just aren't happy I will sneak in an extra feed and let them have some 'quiet zen time' on the boob.  It's too late for catnap at 5pm and this allows us to get through supper and baths.

And hey - congrats to your DH for passing his exam!!!!!  Great news! 

DH is packing up and getting ready to leave for Italy and Germany tomorrow - he's gone until next Monday.    I hope the week passes quickly.  My mom is coming tomorrow till Wed. and his mom then Thu. till Sun...... eeeeek.  I know it will be good to have help here, heck I have LOADS of laundry to be folded that they'll both be happy to do... but, *sigh* I really enjoy my own space.  I think we'll plan to do some Christmas decorating and special crafts each day - something for the girls to make for daddy each day.  They're gonna be so sad.  Sarah cries her little heart out everyday when daddy leaves for work

Have to say the girls and thinking about crawling but only for short moments and then the thoughts are brushed out of their minds by two bigger girls who swoop in and lie all around them.  Honestly there's nowhere for them to crawl too if they wanted to.  :roll:  If I put toys *just* out of their reach someone either hands it to them or snatches it away almost immediately.  Oh well - I should enjoy knowing where they are while I can... once they start to crawl I'm sure I'll be going out of my mind with them hiking off in different directions.    

We're still doing ok with solids - although nowhere near where most of you are.  They love their cereal now and will take a COUPLE bites of squash, apples, banana but they still aren't totally sure about these other things.  Kaia figured out how to get cheerios in her mouth - took a lot of work and after working and working to get 3 or 4 in and chewed up she decided to take a little catnap in her feeding chair   Hard work you know!!  Hannah figured it out the next morning - got only 1 in her mouth, didn't realize I guess that she needed to chew it and promptly started to choke, gag and then throw up :roll:  Fun stuff.

Night sleep is going so well now.  They go down without any fuss, just lie them down anywhere between 7 and 7.30pm and they either go right to sleep or chit chat for a bit and then go to sleep.  SOOOOO nice!!!  And then I don't hear from them till 5am - they've had a few nights of an odd waking at 4.46am  (yes, 4.46am!!), usually going right back to sleep but I've had a night with each of them fussing on and off till I feed them at 6-6.30am.  I'd really like to get them to not wake until 7am.  Patience I guess.

OH and welcome Jenean  How cool to have Riley and Jayson's nanny hanging out with us!!

Oh and for anyone new:  I'm Judy (obviously :wink:), 37, married to dh for 4yrs last week together for 9yrs, mom to Zoe 3.5, Sarah 2, and Kaia & Hannah 7 months today

[sophieandhannah]

Judy, LOL about the cheerios!! Those girls are a riot.
Erin sorry about Katie, hope you both are feeling better soon.  Hang in there Holly. 
Cathy..not surprised you are a babe and carter's pretty cute too
Goodnight.
Hannah

[Arwyn's mom]

Traci's DH... Congratulations!!!

Traci... Bedtimes... we try to stick to 6:30 but with the catnap in absentia, we have been putting Arwyn down at 6:00. Some days where it is obvious she is tired and wanting to sleep, we put her down even earlier but those days are rare... we have done it maybe once in the last month.

Erin... sorry to hear about Katie's trip to the ER. :cry:  I am glad your paediatrician is so wonderful and that Katie is doing fine now.

Hayley... bummer about the trip. :cry:  I do hope you and Daniel are feeling better soon.

Judy... Italy and Germany... one day, you'll have to convince his company to send you too... like for moral support :wink: . I love hearing stories about your girls, they make me smile.

Holly... Hang in there... Brady will get the hang of this sleeping thing yet! :shock:

Cathy... hot mama! Thanks for posting the pics. Your lo looks a lot like your DH. I love that picture of him in the leaves. Yeah for Carter going down for naps and a good sleep even with noise around him! Don't you love it when you're successful? 

Kate... I know what you mean by having to explain how you have all these "friends". Feels weird, doesn't it? I really do consider you all my friends and it is totally awkward to explain that to someone who doesn't do this kind of thing.

Going to bed early tonight... pizza, pop and an early bedtime on Saturday... ho hum.

Oh yeah... Ankie, 33, elementary school teacher, married for 3, together for 7. Two birds, Spike and Fred (both female  :roll: ... you have to ask DH why the names).  Proud mommy to Arwyn Ophelia aka The Nut.

[Nikki~Nathan&Danielle]

LOL Kate about being busted!  :lol:   I had no idea WHAT a message board was until I stumbled across this one when Nathan was 5mths old (even though he'd been BWed since 3wks old).  How did I survive without I wonder?

Good luck with your jobs Naomi and Hannah!

Traci, Danielle still has the same 7pm bedtime regardless of the time her final nap ended.  Congrats to your DH!

Judy, great that the girls are getting the hang of eating, D is scoffing down so much food now, for one that took so long wanting to eat she sure can pack it away. 

Anyone have issues with other people offering food to your babies?  My stepdad put a bowl of ice cream in from of D last night for dinner (WTH? :evil: ) - fortunately my mum was holding her and scowled at him and removed the bowl super quick before little missy managed to grab at it.  If I'm going to be giving her new food it's at lunch time and on MY schedule!  Gee, ya think he might have learnt when Nathan was 5mths old and he gave him a teaspoon of HONEY before I saw what was going on - talk about hear my wrath!  :x

Erin, glad to hear Katie is better.

*Waves* to everyone else!

Well I'm Nikki, 33, married to DH for 5yrs, fulltime SAHM but studying towards a diploma so I can work at home next year.

[mickymuscles]

hi girls!!

Traci: we also put jack down at the same time everynight.  sometimes it is stretching him a bit but then it backfires in the morning with him.  If we put him down earlier, he wakes earlier, then he'll go down earlier, wake earlier, etc, etc,....you get the idea. :roll:   when i have let him go down too early i end up having to pay for it and try to "reset" his clock for the next week. Oh, and CONGRATS!!!!! to your DH.  what were these exams for again??  I'm sure you've mentioned it but my memory is short!!!

Erin....I hope Katie is feeling better soon.  So scary when they are so sick like that!  If you ever notice her breathing so hard that she is pulling the muscles in between her ribs in, or if she is listless or her coloring is pale or even a bit blue tinged especially around her lips or nose make sure to take her back to the ER.  (((((((HUGS))))))))  You can PM or e-mail me if you have any other ?'s about signs or symptoms or if your just not sure if you should be going to the ER.

Ankie-Jack is doing very well.  He is oblivious to his casts......ooooh that little bugger is awake after 30min nap! :x  Gotta go

[Jayri]

hi there girls, I hope your weekend is going well.
Judy I know it about crawling, people tell me I have my hands full with my two, I tell them I have it easy for now as only 1 is mobile. Good to hear that all is going smoothly for you.
Well as for Riley's bedtime, we aim for 7pm each night, it usually in that ball park, but as we all know each day is never the same.
She is doing awesome on her naps tho, she had 1.5 hr so far today, I now have to work on getting her to settle on her own, she can do it sometimes now, but I think that this tooth pushing thro has thrown her off a little.
Janean and I had a good chat last night, I did a list up of the things that she fussues for and also what a routine should loo like. She knows I keep a log, and had been doing so. She was glad I wrote down what she fusses for, as I told her she doesn't know her cues like i do, even dh doesn't.
Thanks for the words of encouragement girls, I will be sure to stop by tomorrow and tell you how it went. Janean also said she would put pics up of me while I am at work, so you can all see what I look like as a working girl.
To give you a rough idea of my hair, it is now brushing the bottom of my ears, I like it, not too short, but I can still tuck it behind my ears.
gotta run, Ri needs me....

[B&BMommy]

Hello All

Not much to report sleep wise, pretty much the same.
 Brady's reflux is acting up again, we had tried the suppositories form of the Losec, but wasn't working well. So we are back to the flavoured liquid form of it mixed with half juice and he at least seems to take it....

Next step is going to a natropath, hoping this is going to help with that.

We are off to a Birthday party this afternoon for friends of ours, their daughters 3rd b-day. Will most likely through us right off schedule, but I don't know what else we can do to, other than not attend, and I don't want to do that.... :oops:

Judy - glad the girls are doing well sleep and eating wise. Yah!

Traci - congrats to dh, well done!

Kate I feel the same way when I tell people about my online friends, they look at me weird, but hey, I do think of all of you as my friends, and a life line when Brady isn't sleeping, which is well, always....lol

Oh ya, for anyone new...I"m Holly, pre-Brady worked as Human Resources Manager, married 5 years to DH Shawn, together total of 7. Want to find another line of work so I can stay at home with Brady and not go back.... :?  Proud mommy to Brady-8months, (Breanna and 4 other angels in Heaven), and mom to one Furbaby,Indy (cat)

Have a great sunday girls.  Enjoy!

Holly - Mom of Brady - Our Touchy/Spirited/Textbook Little Boy - Born March 20 2005